Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Research uses quantum mechanics to melt glass at absolute zero: "Many different materials on earth, like the silica used in windows, can become a glass –– at least in theory — if they are cooled fast enough. But the new research by Prof. Rabani and his colleagues demonstrates that under very special conditions, a few degrees above Absolute Zero (−459.67� Fahrenheit), a glass might melt.
It all has to do with how molecules in materials are ordered, Prof. Rabani explains. At some point in the cooling phase, a material can become glass and then liquid if the right conditions exist."